dens of the people rendered such a measure at present peculiarly severe. To this Mr Vansittart replied, that as it had been arranged that the duty of 1s. 2d. should be paid, -the first instalment of 2d. in November, the second of 3d. in December, the third of 4d. in January, and the fourth of 5d. in February and March, less inconvenience would be occasioned by the tax than some honourable gentlemen had anticipated. After some farther discussion, the question was put, that the clause should stand part of the bill, and carried in the affirmative without a division. The Chancellor of the Exchequer, in moving to fill up the blanks in the clause which followed, proposed that 3d. per bushel, in part payment of the new duty, should become due on the 10th of November next; 3d. further on the 10th of January 1820; 4d. on the 10th of February; and the residue on the 10th of April. Mr Brande expressed a wish, that the first payment should be made in December: but the Chancellor of the Exchequer said, that it was impossible to accede to this delay without likewise postponing the period of final payment. On its being understood that this was the clause which provided for taxing the stock in hand, a division took place, and the clause as originally proposed was carried by 175 to 67.

The next clause was that which related to coffee, and which raised the duty on low-priced coffee from 74d. to 18. per lb. Mr J. P. Grant moved, to insert in the clause the old duty of 74d.; but the motion was negatived without a division, and the clause as originally proposed agreed to. The clause imposing an additional duty of 16. 2d. on every bushel of malt, from the 5th of July, making the whole duty per bushel 3s. 6d., was carried by 171 to 82, The

clause imposing an additional duty on British spirits was agreed to without a division.

On the clause for imposing an additional excise duty of 4 per cent on tea being read, an amendment was proposed by Mr T. Wilson, and adopted, for exempting from additional duty teas sold at the East India sales at or under 2s. per lb. The Customs' Duties Bill also went through a committee, in which the clause for laying an additional duty on wool was carried, on a division, by 106 to 63.

The House having, on the motion of the Chancellor of the Exchequer, resolved itself into a Committee of Supply, and the titles of several documents referred to the committee being read, that right honourable gentleman moved, that a sum be granted, not exceeding L. 1,200,000, for defraying the Extraordinary Expences of the army of Great Britain for the present year. This motion gave rise to considerable discussion, and the repetition of many topics formerly adduced on both sides. Mr C. Hutchinson wished to have some explanation respecting the item of L. 73,000 on account of the commissariat and auditor-general's office at Lisbon. The Chancellor of the Exchequer observed, that the establishment had answered every purpose originally contemplated, and that the greatest exertions were now making to wind up every account arising out of the late war. resolution for voting the sum of L. 67,534 for the expences of the Government of Ceylon was then agreed to. On the motion of the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the sum of L. 20,000 was voted for the extraordinary expences of the army in Ireland. The right honourable gentleman next moved for a grant to the amount of L. 1,000,000,

The

as part payment of the sum of L. 2,000,000, towards the repair of fortifications in the Low Countries, which was also agreed to. Various other sums were then voted for particular or local purposes, viz. L.100,000 for the aid of the poor clergy in England; L. 10,000 to the poor clergy of Scotland; L. 48,904 for payment of the interest due on the sum of L. 300,000 stipulated to be advanced by treaty to the Portuguese Government in the year 1815; L.23,094 for supplying deficiencies in the fee fund; L. 15,000 for the expence of certain improvements at Bangor-Ferry, in North Wales; L. 12,500 for improving the harbour of Holyhead; L. 13,300 for repairing the harbour of Lyme; L.1,000 to the Board of Agriculture; L.28,000 for repairing British forts on the coast of Africa; an allowance of L. 1,175 to Andrew Alley and Edward Stanley, two of his Majesty's superannuated consuls; L. 24,000 for defraying the expences of the Protestant charter-schools in Ireland; L. 30,000 for the Foundling Hospital; and L. 32,000 currency for the House of Industry and Asylum for indigent Children. The usual grants of the year for Ireland were likewise put and carried.

On the following day Mr Brogden brought up the Report of the Čommittee of Ways and Means, and the two first resolutions were agreed to by the House. On the third resolution being put, namely, "that the sum of L. 244,892: 18:6, being the surplus amount now remaining in the Exchequer of the ways and means voted for 1818, be applied to the service of the present year," Mr Hume, after calling the attention of the House to the statement made by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, that he had in the course of the three last years redeemed L. 23,000,000 of the national debt,

proceeded to remark on this statement as contrasted with the report of the Finance Committee. He believed that there had not been a surplus of L. 2,000,000 in the year 1818, and that the surplus would not, in fact, be found to exceed L.500,000. He also believed, that none of the interest of the public debt had been reduced since the peace.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer had not expected to be called upon at this time to give a general statement of the funded and unfunded debt, and of the system of finance by which they were managed. But the most superficial acquaintance with the subject would supply suf ficient answers to the observations of the honourable gentleman. There had been, on the 5th of January last, a reduction of the funded debt since the peace to the amount of L. 28,000,000. The interest of this sum might be stated at L. 900,000. It was true there had been at the same time an increase of the unfunded debt of about L. 4,000,000. The unfunded debt had been on the 5th January 1816, the period from which the peace was dated, L. 41,000,000; and on the 5th of January last, it had been L. 45,000,000. But in 1816, the whole of the unfunded debt had been at 5 per cent.; and in January last it had been at the rate of 5 per cent. There was, therefore, a reduction of interest for unfunded debt of about L. 800,000. The whole reduction of interest was thus L. 1,700,000. The only reason for not having paid the interest to the Bank, as appeared by the report of the Bank committee, was, that the Bank had refused to exchange the principal, it being usually understood that interest was not due to the Bank, till the principal was either paid off or exchanged. But the only consequence of this delay

was, that the interest was in arrear. It had been provided for by Parliament in the supplies of the year. The sum of L. 1,600,000, mentioned by the honourable member, was the charge upon the loan of last year, and was provided for by the new taxes granted this year by that House.

to.

The resolutions were then agreed

On the 28th of June the Report of the Committee of Ways and Means was received; and, after some discussion on this subject, the House resolved itself into a Committee, when the Chancellor of the Exchequer stated, that the whole amount of outstanding Exchequer-bills last year was L.49,000,000, which at the close of this year would be reduced to 10 millions, leaving L. 38,500,000, of which the Bank of Ireland would hold about L.2,500,000 and the Bank of England about L. 14,000,000. -Taking these sums jointly at L. 19,000,000, and deducting the L. 5,000,000 to be paid to the Bank, the bills would then amount to L. 14,000,000. Now, as he meant to propose a grant of L. 16,500,000 Exchequer-bills, if this sum were deducted from L. 38,500,000, there would remain L. 22,000,000 of unfunded debt in Exchequer-bills, in the hands of private individuals; to replace which L. 20,000,000 in Exchequer-bills had already been granted. Of Irish bills now outstanding there were L.4,500,000; but he presumed that a grant of L.2,000,000 in Irish Exchequer-bills would be sufficient to replace them. There was also a surplus of monies granted for the service of last year, amounting to L.244,892 189, which he should move the House to apply to the service of the present year. Besides this, there were nearly L. 3,000,000 deposited by various acts of Parlia

ment in the Exchequer, which of course still further reduced the amount of those bills held by private individuals. After a short discussion, the three following resolutions, formerly proposed, were severally put and agreed to: "That a sum of L. 16,500,000 be raised, by Exchequer-bills, for the services of the present year, 1819: That L.2,000,000, British currency, be raised by Exchequer-bills, for the service of Ireland for the present year: And that the sum of L.244,892: 18: 9, being the surplus amount now remaining in the Exchequer of the ways and means voted for 1818, be applied to the service of the present year."

Our readers will have seen, that part of the Ways and Means detailed in the budget, for meeting the service of the current year, was the appropriation of L. 12,000,000 from the Sinking Fund; a measure as to the policy or impolicy of which we are in a great measure prevented from giving an opinion, by reflecting that it had become one of stern and inevitable necessity. This result had indeed been long ago predicted; and there can be little doubt that such a fund offered strong temptations to Ministers, and held out a ready resource in case of difficulty; but, on the other hand, when we reflect on the circumstances of Europe, the magnitude of the establishments we were compelled to maintain, in order to preserve our relative position among the other nations, the abolition of the property-tax and others to the amount of L. 18,000,000, and the undoubted fact, that the accumula. tion of that fund beyond certain li mits would be attended with the most ruinous consequences, first to funded, and ultimately to all other species of property, we are the less inclined to regret the adoption of a

measure which promised present relief, without adding materially to the taxes levied from an already overburdened people, or tending in any degree to impair public credit and the faith of the nation. According ly, the House having, on the 29th of June, resolved itself into a Committee for appropriating a portion of the sinking fund to the service of the year, the Chancellor of the Exchequer remarked, that he had this year provided a part of the supply from the sinking fund, because it would be no breach of faith with the public creditor, and because the measure was in some degree provid. ed for in the original constitution of the fund. The period of fluctuation in the public funds, and speculation on the Stock Exchange, would now be at an end, by the settlement of our currency, and the sufficiency of our resources to answer all public purposes, without resorting to borrowing. It might be supposed that the present measure would have an unfavourable effect upon the funds, by diminishing the purchases of the commissioners. This, however, he hoped might not be the case. When we had no more need for loans, and when we were found to possess a really effective sinking fund to the amount contemplated, he was convinced that there would be a gradual improvement in public credit, and that the funds would make a progressive advancement without being liable to fluctuation. In the course of the ensuing year, as has been already stated, there would only be L.4,000,000 or L. 5,000,000 to be provided for. He hoped that the sum might be so reduced as to be provided for in other ways than by loan, and thus prevent any new burden on the money-market. Thus the present measure, of taking so much from the sinking fund, would

have no bad effect upon the state of the funds. It appeared, indeed, to him that it mattered little whether we took from one hand and gave with another the same sum, or took and gave nothing at all. The state of supply and demand governed the market. Now, as there would be no new supply of stock, the demand might be supposed to be increased. On the 5th of January 1818, the price of the 3 per cent. stocks had risen above 80; it had even at some time gone higher than that: the amount of the 3 per cent. consolidated fund was then L. 372,000,000 of capital stock. On the 5th of July 1820, it would only be L. 368,000,000, showing a reduction in these 2 years of L.4,000,000. On the 5th of January 1818, the amount of the 3 per cent. reduced was L. 135,000,000; and on the 5th of July 1820, it would not exceed L. 132,000,000, exhibiting a reduction of L. 3,000,000. Thus, there would only be a smaller supply, while the demand might be supposed to be increased. Nothing could promote this more than an abandonment of the system of borrowing. The amount to be taken from the sinking fund next year would be as great as in the present; but its operation would be increased by the addition of the new taxes. Its influence on the funds, too, would be aided by another cause, which it gave him great pleasure to mention; he meant the sums invested in the public funds from the savings banks. He was happy to mention that these wise and salutary institutions were so encouraged, after a general admission of their utility, that L. 20,000 a week were invested in the public securities. The amount of stock already purchased was so high as L.3,000,000, and was progressively increasing. As these savings were paid into the

public stocks without coming again into the market, they acted as a real sinking fund, and produced as great an effect as the purchases of the commissioners to the same amount. Mr Ricardo remarked, that there was one disadvantage that resulted from the improvement of the public fands, namely, that as the capital rose, the interest fell; and persons would thus be induced to sell out when they were high, in order to re-invest their money in them when they were low: thus they might sell out at 70 or 80, and when war occurred buy in again at 60 or 70, creating a loss of 20 per cent. to the nation, which would go into the pockets of those whom it was not our wish to favour. With respect to the sinking fund, he regretted that the right honourable gentleman had not nade a final arrangement with regard to it, and thus destroyed that system of delusion which had so long prevailed. Yet the Chancellor of the Exchequer seemed still determined to keep up the machinery; for he had said that next year we should have L. 16,000,000 of a sinking fund, and should only require to require to borrow L.11,000,000 for the supplies of the year, leaving a surplus of L. 5,000,000 for the extinction of the debt. Would it not be better to destroy the machinery altogether, and to

The Chancellor of the Exchequer said, that with respect to the sinking fund, he did not mean to pass by lightly the observations of the honourable gentleman; but he would give it as his opinion, that we had not yet arrived at a state when it would be prudent to make any final arrangement regarding it. He expected that we should next year have a clear surplus of L. 5,000,000 for the redemption of the public debt, and that this sum would in a short time be increased to L. 8,000,000. This would be at the original rate of 1 per cent. Till the fund attained that height, he was not sure that he should be led to propose any change in the machinery. He was uncertain what he might do next year; but, at any rate, when the sinking fund had attained L. 8,000,000, it would be time for him, or his successor, to propose some final arrangement.

The Sinking Fund Loan Bill then passed through the committee.

On the 12th of July, Sir H. Parnell, who had previously laid on the table of the House of Commons a series of resolutions on the sub